APRIL IS THE month where gym motivation tends to wane and the Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday exercise routine you held so sacred has long since expired.
That exercise plateau is the last thing you want as summer nears and board shorts are almost acceptable office attire. But follow these few simple steps to get the head back in the game and the fitness routine nailed again.
Have a goal
Write it down. Tell someone or get a coach. Train for a reason, even if it’s to impress the lads/ladies on a night out with killer calves or bulging biceps. Don’t walk aimlessly into the gym and just plod from machine to machine with no purpose.
Advertisement
Sign up for a run, a charity cycle, a hike, a climb, a duathlon, a triathlon, an epic adventure race, anything! And plan accordingly. Analyse the demands of the event and take it seriously; ascertain what the goal requires, talk to people who are experts in it.
Do a new class
You might be the world’s biggest advocate of spinning (for example) but if you find yourself at a plateaux in your training maybe it’s time to add in another class or get out of spinning altogether? Granted, some classes are as much social as they are about training but if you’re in it to lose weight and haven’t done so for weeks it’s time to change the routine.
Zumba, TRX, circuits or boot camp? Each can make a firm argument they’ll burn as many calories as any spinning class, and maybe even more with your renewed vigour
Download a new playlist
Control the controllables, as the experts say, and the rest will take care of itself. Controllables are things like you attitude and appetite for work as well as things like music. Small as it may seem, a good playlist can prevent sessions from going stale. Some prefer high tempo techno stuff, more prefer death metal. Whatever works.
Leave the phone in your bag
Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Going to the gym for an hour is great. Exercising for 20 minutes of it is lame. Between talking and typing and drinking and eating and typing some more you’re wasting valuable time. The phone is your biggest distraction and your biggest barrier when it comes to a solid workout.
Get in, get out, and respond to the 348 watsapp updates when you’ve smashed yourself. Your friends won’t mind if you don’t update them on what you’re having for dinner.
Start a whole new programme
Your issue may be that you have been doing the same thing for a while and you are just bored with the same routine?
Something as simple as the order in which you train your muscle groups could be the difference between being stuck on your goal for another week and moving on to the next goal.
Losing gym motivation as summer nears? Follow these rules
APRIL IS THE month where gym motivation tends to wane and the Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday exercise routine you held so sacred has long since expired.
That exercise plateau is the last thing you want as summer nears and board shorts are almost acceptable office attire. But follow these few simple steps to get the head back in the game and the fitness routine nailed again.
Have a goal
Write it down. Tell someone or get a coach. Train for a reason, even if it’s to impress the lads/ladies on a night out with killer calves or bulging biceps. Don’t walk aimlessly into the gym and just plod from machine to machine with no purpose.
Sign up for a run, a charity cycle, a hike, a climb, a duathlon, a triathlon, an epic adventure race, anything! And plan accordingly. Analyse the demands of the event and take it seriously; ascertain what the goal requires, talk to people who are experts in it.
Do a new class
You might be the world’s biggest advocate of spinning (for example) but if you find yourself at a plateaux in your training maybe it’s time to add in another class or get out of spinning altogether? Granted, some classes are as much social as they are about training but if you’re in it to lose weight and haven’t done so for weeks it’s time to change the routine.
Zumba, TRX, circuits or boot camp? Each can make a firm argument they’ll burn as many calories as any spinning class, and maybe even more with your renewed vigour
Download a new playlist
Control the controllables, as the experts say, and the rest will take care of itself. Controllables are things like you attitude and appetite for work as well as things like music. Small as it may seem, a good playlist can prevent sessions from going stale. Some prefer high tempo techno stuff, more prefer death metal. Whatever works.
Leave the phone in your bag
Going to the gym for an hour is great. Exercising for 20 minutes of it is lame. Between talking and typing and drinking and eating and typing some more you’re wasting valuable time. The phone is your biggest distraction and your biggest barrier when it comes to a solid workout.
Get in, get out, and respond to the 348 watsapp updates when you’ve smashed yourself. Your friends won’t mind if you don’t update them on what you’re having for dinner.
Start a whole new programme
Your issue may be that you have been doing the same thing for a while and you are just bored with the same routine?
Something as simple as the order in which you train your muscle groups could be the difference between being stuck on your goal for another week and moving on to the next goal.
This is the biggest mistake people make starting an exercise routine
We sent one of our journalists to Dublin’s newest boxing gym to see how fit he really is
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Exercise Fitness